AR browser Junaio relaunches with a new look, feel and API, supporting HTML5 and JavaScript

A lot has happened in the period since, for example last year it upgraded things to marry augmented reality with image recognition, meaning not only could you scan QR codes and barcodes, you could also scan photos using the app. And now Metaio, the good folk behind Junaio, has announced another big update to the augmented reality browser.

In addition to a rather lovely new user interface, its new API is also being rolled out which now includes HTML5 and JavaScript support for third-party developers to deploy games and other AR-related experiences that interact and respond to real-world elements.

Indeed, we’re told that Junaio has more than 10,000 developers actively building on top of Junaio’s API, so the inclusion of HTML5 and JavaScript will go along way towards opening up the platform to even more.

For more than a year now, Junaio has enabled smartphone users to scan QR codes, navigate indoor and outdoor environments and discover augmented content in images and print. Indeed there have been a number of partnerships of late, such as the hook-up with eBay to let users explore classified ads, whilst Foursquare, Eventbrite, Twitter, Instagram, and Wikipedia have also been reeled into the AR realm.

For example, you can hold your mobile phone over an area in a town and be guided to read information on nearby landmarks.

When you first load the new app, you’ll be greeted with a quick tutorial, after which you’ll be guided to smart GPS augmented reality content, which displays data based on your location. From there, you just need to swipe to access the QR code scanner, a list of new and popular content channels, or a visual search engine that takes you directly to the AR content without leaving the screen.

“Mobile users should be able to browse life like the Web,” says Trak Lord, head of US Marketing & Media Relations for Metaio. “This latest version of Junaio is the first major step to making that a reality.”

While there are a slew of apps that tap GPS, image recognition, visual search and other elements of augmented reality, Junaio does a good job of merging them all.

Founded in 2003, Metaio employs 75+ people at two locations – in its Munich HQ and subsidiary Metaio Inc. in San Francisco.